Background Lameness is known to be the primary cause of athletic poor performance in horses. Back pain had a significant prevalence in equine athletes and are a common complaint during chiropractic evaluations. According to chiropractic theory, spinal articular dysfunction disrupts normal neural function that may lead to pain or poor performance. Objectives To analyse data collected by a retrospective study on Brazilian show jumping horses evaluated by a veterinary chiropractor for the presence of vertebral subluxation complexes (VSC), a spinal articular dysfunction. Study Design Retrospective analysis. Methods A total of 492 show jumping horses, from beginners to high-performance levels, were included in this retrospective analysis from 3 years of examinations. Their age varied from 4 to 19 years. The exam was performed by a veterinary doctor (DVM) and certified member of the International Veterinary Chiropractic Association (IVCA). Each horse had 30 spinal segments evaluated for the presence of dysfunctional articulations. Age and training level were also considered for analysis. Results Each horse had on average 11.9 (±3.5) VSC along their vertebral column. The minimal number of dysfunctional segments observed per patient was 2 (6.6% of spine segments) and the maximum was 23 (76.6% of spine). No animals in this study (0/492) were free of VSC, and (89.8%) presented segmental dysfunction in all 3 spinal regions. This study found the most affected vertebrae were L3, L2, L4, C1 and T7, respectively. Main limitations Lack of data on subsequent athlete performance after manipulation of VSC. Conclusions Jumping horses showed a high prevalence of VSC, especially in spinal joints with limited ranges of motion or those subjected to excessive loads, such as the lumbar spine, thoracic sling area, and atlanto-occipital joint. Practically, no equine athlete is free of spinal articular dysfunction.